


Lies and Love and Truths

by shanachie



Category: The Night Shift (TV 2014)
Genre: M/M, family bonds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 02:26:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15500280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shanachie/pseuds/shanachie
Summary: Rick needed to get out of San Antonio. Maybe it's about time he came clean with the rest of his family.





	Lies and Love and Truths

**Author's Note:**

> I rewatched all of season 4 and then went back and rewatched seasons 1-3 and some of the things Rick said stuck with me. I feel like there was so much they didn't explore with him (and Drew) so I'm going to be doing some exploring with them. As always thanks to its_not_my_fault for her help with this.

Rick paused at the end of the driveway, breathing deeply for a minute, and staring at the black mailbox with _Lincoln_ lettered on it in silver. It had been repainted since the last time he’d seen it and he could see his mother’s careful hand in the lettering.

Taking a final, deeper, breath, Rick spun the wheel, heading his truck up the driveway. As he drove up to the house, he saw it hadn’t changed much in the years he’d been away. The same wide porch was wrapped around the majority of the house with rockers just waiting for someone to sit while the only thing that had changed about the house itself was it looked a little more worn. As he pulled to a stop, his mother came out onto the porch, drying her hands on a kitchen towel. Her eyes widened as a moment as he recognized Rick. He shut the engine off as she called, “Richard! Richard! Get out here! Come here _now_! Our baby’s home! Rick’s home!”

“Mom,” Rick groaned as he swung his door open and maneuvered his way out of the truck. “Don’t raise the dead.”

She stopped her celebration as she watched his slow progress towards the porch, frowning at his slightly uneven gait. “What happened?”

“I told you I was in an accident,” Rick reminded her. “On my way back to post.”

She hugged him. “You said you were all right.”

“I said there were some complications.” Rick straightened up as his father joined them on the porch. “Sir.”

“You’re in one piece?” his father asked.

“Mostly,” Rick answered. “Like I said, there were some complications.”

His father studied him for a moment, then stepped back. “Come in. You can tell your mother all about it while she fusses over you.”

Rick hooked a thumb at his truck. “I just need to get my bag.”

His mother shooed him into the house. “I’ll get it for you. Go in with your father.”

“Mom, I lost my leg. Not an arm. It’s fine.” When she glared him at him, he insisted, “I can manage to grab my duffle.”

His father laid a hand on his shoulder, guiding him into the house. “Let your mother fuss, son. When she couldn’t come down to see you…” he trailed off, then continued, “Let her fuss or it’ll be worse.”

Rick gave in, handing over his keys and following his father into the house. “Did you repaint?” Rick asked as he looked around the living room.

“Your mother insisted. Can I get you a beer?” his father asked.

Rick shook his head at the offer. “Not right now, sir.”

“Strong painkillers?”

“No, not much anymore. Some Tylenol when it gets bad, but I do have some stronger stuff when it gets too bad.” Anything else he might have said was interrupted by his mother coming in and dropping his bag. “I could have gotten it,” he reiterated.

She stepped towards him blue eyes so like his own searching his face, before she hugged him tightly. “Did you drive all the way here? Why didn’t you tell us how badly you were hurt? We would have come to you.”

“Georgia, let the boy breathe and sit down. You’re so worried about him and you’ve got him standing there,” Richard told her.

His mother glared at her husband, but herded Rick over to the couch, settling him on it, and fluttering around until she was sure he was comfortable. “I have lemonade. Do you want some?”

Before Rick could answer, she hurried off towards the kitchen, presumably to fetch the lemonade. “You’d better put your foot down before she has half the county over here,” his father commented.

“I thought you said to let her fuss?”

“Well, there’s fussing and there’s overwhelming. You haven’t been home but five times since you up and joined the Army your second year of college so I’m guessing you have a reason now.”

“Maybe I was just homesick,” Rick suggested. “Or wanted to see the two of you.”

“If you wanted to see us, we could have made the trip down, there was no reason to drive up without telling us what happened.”

“Richard!”

“Don’t ‘Richard’ me, Georgia.” His father turned to look at his mother who was carrying the company tray into the room, loaded down with glasses, the pitchers, and what looked like homemade cookies. “He might be an adult, but common courtesy said he could have told us he was hurt.”

“You’re right, Dad,” Rick told him. “I _should_ have called you and Mom. But I had a lot to deal with. Both right after it happened and since. And I just didn’t want to tell you two what happened over the phone.”

Georgia set the tray down before she took the seat next to Rick. Now her hands fluttered as she tried to figure out how to comfort him. “You weren’t alone when it happened were you?” she asked. “You didn’t stay alone?”

“My unit was with me. We.” He paused, remembering Wilson. “We lost one of the boys in the accident,” Rick explained. “And I’ve been staying with a… friend.”

Georgia’s eyes lit up at the pause. “Someone special? Oh, Rick. I’m so happy. Well, why didn’t you bring her with you?” Georgia asked, finally pouring the lemonade and handing glasses to first Richard then Rick. She settled back on the couch with her own glass. “You know she would have been welcome. And we’ve got the room.”

“I wasn’t staying with a _girl_ friend, Mom.” Rick looked down at his lap, running his fingers through the condensation on his glass. He hadn’t intended to tell his parents about Drew this soon, but it looked like he was going to start laying the groundwork. “I was staying with a good friend, but he wasn’t a girl.”

“Any of your friends are welcome, Rick,” his mom insisted after a slight pause as she digested his words.

“I’m not sure Drew would have felt comfortable or welcome,” Rick admitted. When he saw Georgia about to protest, he added, “We had a fight, Mom.”

She patted his knee, not quite hiding the flinch when she touched the edge of his prosthetic through his jeans. “I’m sure you two will make up.”

Before he could think of anything to fill the silence, Richard spoke up, “Georgia, why don’t you let the boy head up towards his room and you go get clean sheets. I’m sure he’s tired.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Rick said as his mother hurried away.

“Do you need help getting that to your room?” Richard asked.

When Rick shook his head, he added, “You better get upstairs before your mother thinks you got lost and sends out a search party.”

“S&R,” Rick told him before heaving himself to his feet, pausing when he was upright to make sure he had his balance. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Richard make a movement towards him that stopped when Rick began moving. “Later, Dad.”

“Sleep well, son. It’s good to have you home.”

Reaching his bedroom, he found changes there too; more drastic than a new coat of paint. The posters that had papered his walls when he was a teen had been removed and the walls had been repainted a soothing blue. The twin bed that he’d outgrown before he graduated high school had been replaced with a queen that his mother was smoothing the covers on. She looked up as he tentatively entered the room. “I know it looks different,” she started.

“It's fine, Mom. I didn’t expect you to leave it as a shrine or anything.” Rick dropped his bag inside the door and sank gratefully into the chair placed not far from there. He glanced around the room some more. “It looks nice.”

“Can I get you anything else?”

“No. Thanks.” Rick dredged up a smile. “I’m good, Mom. Just need a nap to start getting myself back on a normal schedule. I’ll grab a couple hours now, then get up for dinner with you and Dad and hopefully sleep the night.”

She stopped by him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “I’ll just be downstairs. Your dad will probably go putter in the barn. But you call me if you need me.”

Rick nodded, hoping he didn’t scream himself awake or startle anyone. “See you later, Mom.” He really hoped she’d take the hint.

With one last kiss to the top of Rick’s head, Georgia bustled from the room. Rick looked down at his jeans after she left, knowing he wouldn’t want to sleep in them or with his prosthesis on. Leveraging himself to his feet, he made his way over to the bed and began the process of getting ready to sleep.

 

 

Entering the kitchen a few hours later, Rick found his mother just beginning to dish up dinner. “It smells good, Mom.”

She turned, smiling. “Good. Have a seat. Everything’s ready.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No thank you. I have it handled and your father should be in any minute.” As Georgia finished speaking, Richard came in the back door, going straight to the sink to wash up.

A few minutes later, the three Lincolns were seated at the table, passing the dishes around. “I’m sure you’re glad to get a home cooked meal,” Georgia commented as they started eating.

“Actually Drew is a pretty good cook and he’s been teaching me when I’m not deployed. I’m not too bad now,” Rick answered.

“That’s the second time you’ve mention Drew,” his father commented. “Is he a member of your unit?”

Rick took a deep breath, figuring now was a good time to explain to them. “No,” he answered. “At least not now. We have served together, but Drew is… Drew’s my partner. Or he was. Right now we’re taking a break.”

“Your… partner?” Georgia asked. “As in your work partner? But you just said he wasn’t part of your unit.” Her tone indicated she was trying to understand.

“He’s not. Drew and I met…” Rick paused, deciding that his parents really didn’t need to know the exact circumstances of how he met Drew. “He was a medic for one of the units I served with and we became good friends. Over time that friendship has become a lot more.” Rick looked down at his plate for a minute, trying to forget the last view of Drew he’d had and the heartbroken look on the other man’s face. “But right now, I just needed time away to figure out who I am after all this happened.”

Rick looked up to see a look of dawning realization on his mother’s face and a look of coldness on his father’s. “Are you saying you’ve had _relations_ with this other man?” his father asked in an icy tone.

His fingers tightened around his fork. “I’m saying that I love Drew,” he answered in a quiet voice. “I may have walked away from him because I’m not in a good place right now, but I did not stop loving him.”

Richard stood up, pushing his chair back so fast he almost upended it. “No son of mine!” he thundered. “I will not stay here and listen to this in my own house!” Storming away from the table, he continued to mutter to himself.

Rick turned back towards his mother, who hadn’t said a word since his revelation. “Mom?”

“Give your father a little while,” she said quietly. “It might take an adjustment.”

“You aren’t saying anything about it.”

She reached out, patting his hand. “I think I always knew. You were always so engrossed in your studies or your sports. And no girls ever seemed to catch your eye for long. I think in my heart… I always suspected.”

“I’m sorry, Mom.”

Georgia got up, moving around to hug him around the shoulders. “Don’t be sorry, Richie. Don’t ever be sorry for who you are. Or what you’ve become. I’m proud of you. Proud of the man you are and your service. And, as long as you continue to be a strong man, I’ll continue to be proud of you.” She retook her seat. Folding her hands, she faced him squarely. “So you said you met Drew in the Army? Is he still serving?”

Rick laughed. “He is. Although he’s in the Reserves right now and currently doing his residency. Drew’s a doctor, Mom.”

She smiled. “Well, every parent does want their child to marry a doctor.” Georgia patted his hand. “Oh, you have to tell me everything about Drew.”

 

 

For the next couple of days, his father avoided him; even going so far as to leave the room every time Rick entered it. After the first couple of times, Rick looked to his mother for an explanation, but she just shrugged to indicate she had no idea.

Finally Rick cornered his father in the tack room of the barn, standing in the doorway so the older man couldn’t leave. “Dad, I don’t want to leave things like this, but if it comes down to you or him, it’s going to be him. Even with all the problems we’re having now.”

“I don’t understand.” Richard dropped down onto a near-by hay bale as if all his strings had been cut. “How? How does that happen? How can _you_ possibly be gay? You joined the Army. You’re a Ranger! You played sports in high school and dated girls!” Richard shook his head. “How can you be and do all that and still be gay?”

“My preferences have nothing to do with my actions. Just because I’m gay... I’m not any less of a man. I tried to conform, tried so hard to be what you saw as normal before I left for college. But then I decided I just want to be myself. Especially after I met Drew.”

“So it’s all that man’s fault.”

“No, Dad,” Rick answered forcefully. “It has nothing to do with Drew, other than I love him. I tried acting straight and I wasn’t happy. Trying to act straight or acting hetero-normative doesn’t mean anything.” Rick blew out a breath. “I love you. You’re important to me. But I’m not going to sacrifice who I am and who else I love because of your prejudice.”

His father gave a sharp nod. “I… want to understand. I do love you, son, but I need some time to process this.”

“You can process all you want, Dad, just don’t shut me out. Don’t tell me I’m not your son.”

“That’s fair.” Awkwardly, Richard reached out and patted Rick on the shoulder.

Rick responded by pulling Richard into a brief hug. “That’s all I ask.”

“So. Maybe when you work things out with Drew, he can come visit. I’m sure your mother is dying to meet him.”

Rick chuckled. “I’m surprised she isn’t planning a trip to San Antonio already.”


End file.
